I’ve been recommended a few camera brands for home security and need some advice on which would be the best option. My priorities are: Privacy first, followed by Quality, Reliability, and Ease of Use. Here are the brands I’m considering:
What do you all think?
You could just avoid connecting the recorder to the internet, so there’s no way for anyone to access the data if that worries you. Just watch the footage on a monitor, and you’re set.
For me, I’d say Hikvision is the best. Speco isn’t great, and Dahua is somewhere in the middle. I don’t have enough experience with the others to say much.
Slurry said:
You could just avoid connecting the recorder to the internet, so there’s no way for anyone to access the data if that worries you. Just watch the footage on a monitor, and you’re set.
For me, I’d say Hikvision is the best. Speco isn’t great, and Dahua is somewhere in the middle. I don’t have enough experience with the others to say much.
Are you serious? Dahua makes some of the best low-light motion cameras.
Slurry said:
You could just avoid connecting the recorder to the internet, so there’s no way for anyone to access the data if that worries you. Just watch the footage on a monitor, and you’re set.
For me, I’d say Hikvision is the best. Speco isn’t great, and Dahua is somewhere in the middle. I don’t have enough experience with the others to say much.
Are you serious? Dahua makes some of the best low-light motion cameras.
I’m completely serious. I’ve installed thousands of cameras from both brands and supported other installers too. Hikvision has fewer issues.
Vivian said:
Slurry said:
You could just avoid connecting the recorder to the internet, so there’s no way for anyone to access the data if that worries you. Just watch the footage on a monitor, and you’re set.
For me, I’d say Hikvision is the best. Speco isn’t great, and Dahua is somewhere in the middle. I don’t have enough experience with the others to say much.
Are you serious? Dahua makes some of the best low-light motion cameras.
I’m completely serious. I’ve installed thousands of cameras from both brands and supported other installers too. Hikvision has fewer issues.
Got it.
Slurry said:
You could just avoid connecting the recorder to the internet, so there’s no way for anyone to access the data if that worries you. Just watch the footage on a monitor, and you’re set.
For me, I’d say Hikvision is the best. Speco isn’t great, and Dahua is somewhere in the middle. I don’t have enough experience with the others to say much.
Isn’t that what the NVR does? It’s not connected to your Wi-Fi but stores footage on a hard drive?
Slurry said:
You could just avoid connecting the recorder to the internet, so there’s no way for anyone to access the data if that worries you. Just watch the footage on a monitor, and you’re set.
For me, I’d say Hikvision is the best. Speco isn’t great, and Dahua is somewhere in the middle. I don’t have enough experience with the others to say much.
Isn’t that what the NVR does? It’s not connected to your Wi-Fi but stores footage on a hard drive?
Yes, by not connecting the NVR to the network, no one can snoop. That’s what I mean. Keep it local, and you don’t need to worry about any backdoor access.
Nora said:
Slurry said:
You could just avoid connecting the recorder to the internet, so there’s no way for anyone to access the data if that worries you. Just watch the footage on a monitor, and you’re set.
For me, I’d say Hikvision is the best. Speco isn’t great, and Dahua is somewhere in the middle. I don’t have enough experience with the others to say much.
Isn’t that what the NVR does? It’s not connected to your Wi-Fi but stores footage on a hard drive?
Yes, by not connecting the NVR to the network, no one can snoop. That’s what I mean. Keep it local, and you don’t need to worry about any backdoor access.
So if it’s connected to a VLAN, there’s no way anyone could access it? Does that mean the only issue with Chinese brands is ethical concerns?
Slurry said:
Nora said:
Slurry said:
You could just avoid connecting the recorder to the internet, so there’s no way for anyone to access the data if that worries you. Just watch the footage on a monitor, and you’re set.
For me, I’d say Hikvision is the best. Speco isn’t great, and Dahua is somewhere in the middle. I don’t have enough experience with the others to say much.
Isn’t that what the NVR does? It’s not connected to your Wi-Fi but stores footage on a hard drive?
Yes, by not connecting the NVR to the network, no one can snoop. That’s what I mean. Keep it local, and you don’t need to worry about any backdoor access.
So if it’s connected to a VLAN, there’s no way anyone could access it? Does that mean the only issue with Chinese brands is ethical concerns?
Exactly. If it’s not on the internet, there’s no way for them to connect to it.
Nora said:
Slurry said:
Nora said:
Slurry said:
You could just avoid connecting the recorder to the internet, so there’s no way for anyone to access the data if that worries you. Just watch the footage on a monitor, and you’re set.
For me, I’d say Hikvision is the best. Speco isn’t great, and Dahua is somewhere in the middle. I don’t have enough experience with the others to say much.
Isn’t that what the NVR does? It’s not connected to your Wi-Fi but stores footage on a hard drive?
Yes, by not connecting the NVR to the network, no one can snoop. That’s what I mean. Keep it local, and you don’t need to worry about any backdoor access.
So if it’s connected to a VLAN, there’s no way anyone could access it? Does that mean the only issue with Chinese brands is ethical concerns?
Exactly. If it’s not on the internet, there’s no way for them to connect to it.
Makes sense. But I don’t feel great supporting companies involved in human rights violations, which limits my choices. The only non-Chinese brand my local installer offers is Speco.
Slurry said:
Nora said:
Slurry said:
Nora said:
Slurry said:
You could just avoid connecting the recorder to the internet, so there’s no way for anyone to access the data if that worries you. Just watch the footage on a monitor, and you’re set.
For me, I’d say Hikvision is the best. Speco isn’t great, and Dahua is somewhere in the middle. I don’t have enough experience with the others to say much.
Isn’t that what the NVR does? It’s not connected to your Wi-Fi but stores footage on a hard drive?
Yes, by not connecting the NVR to the network, no one can snoop. That’s what I mean. Keep it local, and you don’t need to worry about any backdoor access.
So if it’s connected to a VLAN, there’s no way anyone could access it? Does that mean the only issue with Chinese brands is ethical concerns?
Exactly. If it’s not on the internet, there’s no way for them to connect to it.
Makes sense. But I don’t feel great supporting companies involved in human rights violations, which limits my choices. The only non-Chinese brand my local installer offers is Speco.
True, but it’s like comparing products made with $25-an-hour labor to those made with $2.50-an-hour labor. If you don’t connect them online, it’s less of a concern.
Nora said:
Slurry said:
Nora said:
Slurry said:
Nora said:
Slurry said:
You could just avoid connecting the recorder to the internet, so there’s no way for anyone to access the data if that worries you. Just watch the footage on a monitor, and you’re set.
For me, I’d say Hikvision is the best. Speco isn’t great, and Dahua is somewhere in the middle. I don’t have enough experience with the others to say much.
Isn’t that what the NVR does? It’s not connected to your Wi-Fi but stores footage on a hard drive?
Yes, by not connecting the NVR to the network, no one can snoop. That’s what I mean. Keep it local, and you don’t need to worry about any backdoor access.
So if it’s connected to a VLAN, there’s no way anyone could access it? Does that mean the only issue with Chinese brands is ethical concerns?
Exactly. If it’s not on the internet, there’s no way for them to connect to it.
Makes sense. But I don’t feel great supporting companies involved in human rights violations, which limits my choices. The only non-Chinese brand my local installer offers is Speco.
True, but it’s like comparing products made with $25-an-hour labor to those made with $2.50-an-hour labor. If you don’t connect them online, it’s less of a concern.
Is Speco at least good enough? Or are there big issues with them?
Slurry said:
Nora said:
Slurry said:
Nora said:
Slurry said:
Nora said:
Slurry said:
You could just avoid connecting the recorder to the internet, so there’s no way for anyone to access the data if that worries you. Just watch the footage on a monitor, and you’re set.
For me, I’d say Hikvision is the best. Speco isn’t great, and Dahua is somewhere in the middle. I don’t have enough experience with the others to say much.
Isn’t that what the NVR does? It’s not connected to your Wi-Fi but stores footage on a hard drive?
Yes, by not connecting the NVR to the network, no one can snoop. That’s what I mean. Keep it local, and you don’t need to worry about any backdoor access.
So if it’s connected to a VLAN, there’s no way anyone could access it? Does that mean the only issue with Chinese brands is ethical concerns?
Exactly. If it’s not on the internet, there’s no way for them to connect to it.
Makes sense. But I don’t feel great supporting companies involved in human rights violations, which limits my choices. The only non-Chinese brand my local installer offers is Speco.
True, but it’s like comparing products made with $25-an-hour labor to those made with $2.50-an-hour labor. If you don’t connect them online, it’s less of a concern.
Is Speco at least good enough? Or are there big issues with them?
They’re okay, but some of their stuff used to just be Dahua cameras with a different label, sold at a higher price.
Check this out: https://ipvm.com/reports/speco-flag.
Also, 90% of cameras are made in China, even when companies say ‘Made in the USA,’ it often just means assembled or packaged here.
Nora said:
Slurry said:
Nora said:
Slurry said:
Nora said:
Slurry said:
Nora said:
Slurry said:
You could just avoid connecting the recorder to the internet, so there’s no way for anyone to access the data if that worries you. Just watch the footage on a monitor, and you’re set.
For me, I’d say Hikvision is the best. Speco isn’t great, and Dahua is somewhere in the middle. I don’t have enough experience with the others to say much.
Isn’t that what the NVR does? It’s not connected to your Wi-Fi but stores footage on a hard drive?
Yes, by not connecting the NVR to the network, no one can snoop. That’s what I mean. Keep it local, and you don’t need to worry about any backdoor access.
So if it’s connected to a VLAN, there’s no way anyone could access it? Does that mean the only issue with Chinese brands is ethical concerns?
Exactly. If it’s not on the internet, there’s no way for them to connect to it.
Makes sense. But I don’t feel great supporting companies involved in human rights violations, which limits my choices. The only non-Chinese brand my local installer offers is Speco.
True, but it’s like comparing products made with $25-an-hour labor to those made with $2.50-an-hour labor. If you don’t connect them online, it’s less of a concern.
Is Speco at least good enough? Or are there big issues with them?
They’re okay, but some of their stuff used to just be Dahua cameras with a different label, sold at a higher price.
Check this out: https://ipvm.com/reports/speco-flag.
Also, 90% of cameras are made in China, even when companies say ‘Made in the USA,’ it often just means assembled or packaged here.
Speco hasn’t used Dahua as an OEM for years. They now use TVT, which is solid. I prefer their NVR interface and mobile app over Hikvision or Dahua.
While their camera selection is smaller, it works fine for most common jobs with 4-8MP cameras.
Nora said:
[deleted]
Reolink is closer to a consumer camera, like Ring or Arlo. They market megapixels but cut corners on important things like lens size and shutter speed. That said, their CX-410 is pretty good. I own a Duo 2 POE and use it for wide-area observation.
Nora said:
[deleted]
Reolink is closer to a consumer camera, like Ring or Arlo. They market megapixels but cut corners on important things like lens size and shutter speed. That said, their CX-410 is pretty good. I own a Duo 2 POE and use it for wide-area observation.
[deleted]
Vivian said:
Nora said:
[deleted]
Reolink is closer to a consumer camera, like Ring or Arlo. They market megapixels but cut corners on important things like lens size and shutter speed. That said, their CX-410 is pretty good. I own a Duo 2 POE and use it for wide-area observation.
[deleted]
I don’t rank cameras, but I use Reolink, Annke, and Dahua. Pick based on your needs, not the brand.
Check out this video: https://youtu.be/IQIDKiIeHE8?si=5UCPaXn64_UyOjzh
Summer said:
Check out this video: https://youtu.be/IQIDKiIeHE8?si=5UCPaXn64_UyOjzh
Will do! Thanks.
I don’t use Blue Iris, but the website has a lot of info. If you want privacy, use POE cameras on their own network. I use Amcrest cameras with Xprotect on my PC.